The Detective Comics writer had a hole in his schedule and DC Comics editors knew his affinity for the character after a short Detective story arc, so Layman was tapped to put the bad-guy ex-actor back on stage alongside artist Cliff Richards in the "Villains Month" issue of Batman: The Dark Knight No. 23.3, available digitally and in comic shops Wednesday.

With the heroes out of the picture, the Secret Society of Super-Villains has risen to power and are on a recruitment drive. And Clayface wants to audition for this crew to get more of the respect he thinks he deserves.

"Not only is he immense and powerful and pliable, but he can also be a master of disguise," Layman says. "Clayface has the potential to be far higher up the criminal hierarchy, but he is handicapped by two things: He doesn't have smarts to match his ambition, and he's got a terrible temper that often keeps him from achieving his goals. My story explores all this."

What Layman has found he likes most about Clayface is his shape-changing qualities.

"It makes him visually interesting, but because Clayface can impersonate others, you can tell some pretty interesting psychological stories as well," the writer says.

Malevolence is running wild in the DC Universe as of late with the arrival of the Crime Syndicate from Earth 3, but Layman feels Clayface is much more ambitious and amoral than straight-up evil.

"If he commits 'evil,' it's to pursue his goal," Layman says. "He's not some sadistic villain that kills and causes pain just for fun. Those sorts of villains don't appeal to me in the slightest."